


Ceasefire

by embarrassingresultofmyfreetime



Category: Doctor Who, Doctor Who & Related Fandoms, Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Gen, Hugs, Other, Spydoc, Thoschei, WHAT MORE DO YOU NEED, because no one ever hugs him, give him a hug please god, idiots in love who won't admit to being idiots nor in love, im only crying a little, inspiration in notes, only mild angst, so they finally hug, the only angst is Dhawan!Master not knowing how to respond to being hugged, these two morons desperately need a hug
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-01
Updated: 2021-02-01
Packaged: 2021-03-17 16:28:17
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,856
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29103309
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/embarrassingresultofmyfreetime/pseuds/embarrassingresultofmyfreetime
Summary: The Doctor and the Master both need a hug from the person they care about most- they're just too stubborn to admit it.
Relationships: The Doctor & The Master (Doctor Who), The Doctor/The Master (Doctor Who), Thirteenth Doctor & The Master (Dhawan), Thirteenth Doctor/The Master (Dhawan)
Comments: 8
Kudos: 32





	Ceasefire

**Author's Note:**

> Inspired by Anonymous Request: "Omg I'd love something Dh!master x thirteen about them having a temporary "let's not talk about it i need a hug" ceasefire"
> 
> And I wholeheartedly agree! So here it is:

Occasions on which the Doctor and the Master pause from their perpetual battles is rare. Over the years, it's gotten less and less common. Back when they were young, all of this- all the battles over Earth, all the threats, all the traps- were much more playful, and so was much easier to pause so that the two of them might grab a bite together and partake in each other's familiar company. However, over time, each slash at each other began to cut deeper and deeper in some failing attempt to 'win' a game that could never be won.

They both loved their fights, they both _needed_ the challenge- but at times, it could become too much. Even for a Time Lord. Or... maybe not a Time Lord, now that they both knew there never really was such a thing.

Point was, their limits had finally been reached. The threshold for pain inflicted upon each other had finally been hit and they both needed time to recuperate before any scheme and/or heroics could resume.

The Master would say it was the Doctor who yielded first.

The Doctor would say it was the Master who suggested it.

Either way they looked at it, a few text messages back and forth from numbers that used to belong to friends later and the Doctor and the Master were staring each other down from opposite sides of the open field.

They had chosen a spot in the middle of nowhere to partake in their agreed upon ceasefire. A place that was hidden by the safety of tall trees and knee-high wildgrass that hid their mutual interest in a way that suggested being nice to each other was the greatest possible sin.

"We agree that this will _never_ be spoken of again? As per our prior arrangement?" the Master questioned skeptically, with a low flat tone and his fists clamped shut.

"Completely. No one will ever know. We keep our mouths shut until long after our souls leave our bodies to rot," the Doctor agreed firmly.

The Master gave a nod to confirm this.

They stood there for a moment more, staring each other down. It was an old concept, but new in practice.

"Are... you okay?" the Doctor asked as the Master shifted from foot to foot, visibly uncomfortable.

The Master shook his head sharply and ignored the way the tips of his ears began to burn red.

"You don't get to ask me that. Not after everything you've done to me. Everything you've put me through," the Master growled through gritted teeth. "I doubt you've ever stopped running long enough to consider the extent of it."

The Master's words didn't linger for long before the Doctor cut through the stillness.

"Me?" the Doctor asked sharply. "What about _you!_ You've _killed_ people. A few years' penance on Earth is the very least you deserve."

"A _few years?!_ " the Master chuckled in the manic, agonizing way he laughed.

He shook his head and caught himself before he could lose his patience.

"Don't _push me_ ," he threatened through gritted teeth.

The Doctor took a deep breath of her own.

"Right. That's not why we're here," she reiterated.

The Master gave a nod and took a breath of his own.

"Honestly... I don't want to talk about it either," the Doctor confessed.

She rubbed her arm and stared off at the ground.

The Master's eyes stayed locked on the dirt as well.

After a moment- a long and terrifying moment, the Doctor took a step forward.

The Master instinctively lifted his fists to defend himself at the sign of movement. After a brief second, he shamefully lowered them and attempted to play it off as if it was nothing.

The Doctor let out a sigh, reached out, and... hugged him.

Her arms reached around him, over the Master's own arms where they remained at his sides, and held him.

"I'm... glad you're still alive..." the Doctor admitted softly.

She could hear and feel the Master's breathing speed up and leave his lips unevenly as he froze in place.

It took him a minute to react at all.

The Doctor held him, pressed her face to his shoulder, and let her hands rest on his upper back as she simply soaked in the moment.

All at once, the Master comprehended the act and returned the embrace. He pulled her tight and firm and practically melted against her. His face hid in her shoulder, against the fabric of her coat, and his arms wrapped around her as if he was terrified she would disappear at any moment.

The Doctor could feel from the tense muscles and mild shake of his shoulders that he was fighting tears. She didn't comment on it and instead let her own tears splash down as she let out a small breath of relief.

The Master eventually spoke again. A weak, cautious whisper that the Doctor could only hear because his face was so close to her right ear.

"I haven't been hugged before," he confessed quietly. The words didn't even sound like they were directed at the Doctor. It felt more as if they'd slipped out in a moment of weakness and abrupt realization.

"Not this me, anyways," he continued softly. "And certainly never like this."

He paused, struggling to collect himself long enough to speak.

"I know the feeling," he elaborated, "from lives past."

He shook his head and buried it closer to the Doctor's collar, as if he could hide there. Away from his own words and the emotions that overwhelmed him.

"I... know what it should feel like. I've always _known_."

He paused. He hesitated.

He trembled as he pressed closer to the Doctor. As if, if he could get close enough, he would be safe, tucked away in her arms.

The Doctor's vision blurred as she willingly pulled him closer and brushed one palm across his upper back to sooth him. She could feel shivers and tremors wrack through his exhausted body as he bit back his emotions.

"This... is far better," he breathed.

The Doctor let out a small chuckle of relief as she carefully soothed the tense muscles of the Master's shoulder within her reach. There was scarring there, scar tissue grown over wounds the Master had never let her know he had. Wounds... that were a direct result of the Doctor's abandonment.

Even so, the Master pressed closer with everything he could. He held her as tight as he could- or at least, as much as he could without hurting her. He clung to her, pretending he would never have to let go- or rather, that she would never leave him- again.

The Doctor kept him safe in her arms and did what little she could to calm him.

They were both a mess of tears by now, but neither was willing to admit it.

The Doctor closed her eyes as she settled her face towards the Master's jaw.

"I... know what you mean..." she agreed softly.

She sighed. "Every new life we're... the same, but also somebody _else_ entirely. I know what the people I knew were like, but _I_ don't know them personally anymore.

Someone... else knew them. Someone else did all those things. And this new me... I've just taken their place."

The Master remained quiet.

"But not you," the Doctor smiled.

The Master shifted closer.

"You never minded-" the Doctor continued, "-that every new me was different, that I had to learn you over again and again. You were patient with me... when you were O."

The Master tensed, but refused to look at her.

"Why did you wait so long?" the Doctor asked softly.

What she was really asking was why he was the Doctor's friend for _so_ long when he could have revealed himself at any time. Why did he wait for _her_.

The Master shook his head against her.

His voice was weak and soft yet steady when he finally replied.

"You're _mine_ ," he grumbled firmly, with the confidence of someone who knew his words were indisputable fact.

The Doctor only chuckled through her silent tears.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

The Master paused briefly to think over this response. He knew the answer well- but not how to explain it.

"This you is the match for this me. I _had_ to wait," he said, faintly annoyed. "For our timelines to line up again... for _this you_."

The Doctor chuckled again, more warmly this time.

"And?" she asked, "Was I worth it?"

A low rumble of a laugh purred from the Master's throat.

"Are you kidding? This you is the most cruel, ignorant, insufferable bastard I could ever have the misfortune of knowing. And, insult to injury, you give _decent_ hugs."

The Doctor could practically feel him smirk.

" _Of course_ you were worth the wait."

The Doctor laughed, warm and wholeheartedly, and even the Master let a chuckle of his own slip through.

"And I _suppose_ ," the Doctor rolled her eyes playfully, "you're reasonably tolerable yourself."

"Careful, Doctor. That nearly makes it sound like you don't hate me," the Master prodded amusingly.

The Doctor bushed her fingers over the back of the Master's head. She gently fixed his hair into place and then sighed with a heavy heart.

"Of course I don't hate you, you idiot."

The Master fell silent but let out a small hum as he settled down. The fear and uneasiness from when he had arrived had long since faded, and the Doctor's own worries disappeared along with them.

They both wanted to apologize- for so many, _many_ things- but neither did.

When their legs grew tired, they allowed themselves to settle onto the soft ground, hidden among the grass and beneath the towering trees.

Without anyone to witness, far from even their Tardises' prying eyes. Without hope, that any of this whatever-it-was between them could ever be fixed. And without any reward, without the equal shares in the universe they had promised each other in lives long past.

They layed there until they fell asleep beneath the beautiful stars as they did their best to forget all the now-broken promises they had once made beneath them.

"I don't hate you either," the Master eventually divulged once they were both more than half-asleep in each others' arms.

"Never completely. Although it would certainly be easier if I did."

The Doctor hummed a warm acknowledgement, but knew better than to reply. If they pretended not to hear what the other said, then they would never have to address the difficult matter.

By the next time they met, they would be at each other's throats again. There was no doubt about it.

By this time tomorrow, they would be wishing this had never happened and doing their very best to forget the warmth it brought to their lonely hearts.

However, for now, they both needed a hug from the person they cared about most. And it was through no fault of their own that the person dearest to their hearts, and their most hated enemy, just so happened to be one in the same....

  
  
  


**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! Please let me know what you think!
> 
> (Also, for the time being, I'm accepting fic prompts! No promises, but if an idea inspires me and I have the time, I will probably write something based on it. Feel free to send more requests and maybe I'll do something like this again.)
> 
> Thanks for the idea, Anon. I hope you like it :)


End file.
